The first real test for Ole Gunnar Solskjær's Manchester United team since the interim manager took over, Tottenham suffered a huge blow to their hopes of keeping pace with Manchester City and Liverpool in the Premier League title race with Marcus Rashford's first-half goal enough to ensure the away side got all the spoils.
Spurs struggling to keep pace with top-two after defeat to United
Mauricio Pochettino's side, who have earned rave reviews so far this season for their adventurous, attacking football, weren't at the races in the opening forty-five minutes, with wayward passes allowing United to gain the upper hand. Indeed, that's where the breakaway came from; a poor pass from Kieran Trippier gifted possession to the Red Devils before Paul Pogba produced a perfect long wracking ball into the path of Marcus Rashford.
The 21-year-old struggled under Jose Mourinho's management, losing his touch in front of goal. However, there were few signs of such issues here, with the Englishman producing a powerful shot from the right into the far corner and beyond the reach of Hugo Lloris. The perfect counter-attacking goal, this was the very opposite of Mourinho's style - fluent, frenetic and buoyant.
A succession of clear cut chances in the second-half threatened to give Spurs a route back into the game, but the heroic performance of David De Gea ensured a sixth successive win for Solskjær's side. As for the home team, defeat leaves them nine points behind Liverpool.
Worrying times for Spurs fans as Harry Kane limps off post-match
What's more, Harry Kane appeared to be in bad shape after the full-time whistle, struggling to walk off the turf.
"It was a clear foul on Harry Kane, a big hit, Mike Dean said he didn't see it," a worried Pochettino side after the match.
"It was a bad tackle and now he has a bit of swelling on his ankle. It wasn't the intention of the United player but it was a bad tackle and Kane was limping after the game."
Kane's track record of ankle injuries will hardly offer much comfort either, having sustained a similar injury in 2018 and missing ten games the season before to the same issue. Thus, any aggravation to the ankle could see the 25-year-old out of action for some pivotal games.
Moussa Sissoko was also taken off injured inside the opening half as the injuries begin to mount on an already minimal Spurs team. Given Son Heung-min is set to jet off to the Asia Cup, this could now become a really tricky period to navigate for Pochettino's side if Harry Kane is out for a sustained period.